URL Label Server, Installation

Editions
There are two editions of the URL Label server: Windows and Linux. They are nearly identical but have slightly different installation procedures.

Download
Installation is very simple. You first create a folder on the computer that controls the label printer, then you download into that folder the version of the URL Label server that matches your operating system.

The URL Label server is self contained in one file urllabel.exe on Windows and urllabel on Linux. No other software, files, or dlls are needed. The URL Label server folder can be renamed, moved, run, and backed up to any location. The folder and data are portable so they can be moved between Windows and Linux systems. The only change needed is downloading the version of the URL Label server than matches the operating system. To completely uninstall, delete the URL Label server folder.

The URL Label server never writes outside of its folder. It doesn't store information in the Windows registry. It doesn't use cookies. If you turn off logging it is just a pass through to printers and doesn't write to disk.

Windows Printer Driver
On Microsoft Windows you must first install a "Windows printer driver" for the label printer. The "generic, text only" printer driver works fine with the URL Label server and is recommended. But if you intend to print directly from other Windows programs you will need to use the printer driver provided by the manufacturer.

The key to working with the URL Label server is the printer name in the Windows printer box/list must contain the word "Zebra" or "Eltron" which indicates that is the printing queue to route labels to. Alternately, you can force both printer selection and the printer format by appending [epl], [zpl], or [ascii] to any printer name. The installed Windows printer does not need to be shared, just named so the URL Label server can find it in the printer list.

In addition to printer naming, when installing a printer driver you have to correctly identify the connection method. If the printer is connected by a USB cable then you will have to select USB, if Ethernet then the label printer's ip address will have to be provided. Printing a test page can be inconclusive because Zebra printers silently throw out input that doesn't conform to their printer language. Use the URL Label server to confirm the Windows printer driver was installed correctly.

Linux Printer Queue
On Linux you must first install a line printer queue for the label printer. This is done by plugging the USB cable from the label printer into the Linux computer. Linux should automatically create a queue named /dev/usb/lp0, /dev/usb/lp1, or higher. The URL Label server searches the /dev/usb folder to find the first lpX file that is for a Zebra printer. If the plug in method doesn't work or the label printer uses Ethernet, use CUPS print server configuration to create the queue. This section will be revised once we obtain an ethernet Zebra printer and integrate it.

Next: Networking, Contents


Copyright (c) LS DataNet Systems, 2022, Last update 02/21/22